Mitski

Working for the Knife

7.2/10

I have a confession - this is the first time I've ever listened to a Mitski song. I'm fairly sure the LGBT agenda are now on their way to revoke my lesbian card, but yes, this is my entry into Mitski's discography. I'll admit, initially, the instrumentation seemed cluttered for me, and it didn't quite work. But, after a few more listens, Mitski's beautiful lyricism cut through me like the titular knife, and her vocals are perfectly complemented by the clattering and rollicking production.

Lately, it seems like a lot of albums have addressed the pain and suffering of celebrity. Billie Eilish's Happier Than Ever, Lorde's Solar Power, and Clairo's Sling, to name a few, have all touched on the topic. "Working for the Knife" is no different, with the knife as a placeholder for the crushing pressures and risk of seeking success and fame in a late-stage capitalist society, demonstrated through lyrics such as "I always thought the choice was mine / And I was right but I just chose wrong / I start the day lying and end with the truth / That I'm dying for the knife".

It's hard to not connect this with the COVID-19 pandemic we're all living through, especially given this is Mitski's first release to streaming services since the start of it. But the difficulty of both living as a celebrity and trying to advance through an unforgiving capitalist society has not changed throughout the pandemic. Instead, it has exposed some of the necessary lies of society.

In a year largely devoid of live music and big-name releases, the pressure of celebrity was, in some part, lifted on the pop and rock stars of the world, and now that it appears the pandemic is drawing to a close, these big names are being drawn back in to a hostile and unforgiving environment.

I've heard the adage before that the last refuge of a singer devoid of ideas is celebrity, the things that are happening directly to them. But on "Working with the Knife", Mitski has managed to create a track that is not only deeply moving, but also deeply relatable. While we might not all be talented singer-songwriters, at the end of the day, we are all working for the knife.

Listen and buy "Working for the Knife" on Bandcamp.

- Alison Brooks, Pitchfork News